Patient Safety Debate
Full Debate: Read Full DebateDepartment: Department of Health and Social Care
Baroness Chapman of Darlington
Main Page: Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Labour - Life peer)Department Debates - View all Baroness Chapman of Darlington's debates with the Department of Health and Social Care
(9 years, 10 months ago)
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Mr Hunt
It certainly does, and that is another area where it would be refreshing to have a bit more openness from the Labour party. We can afford 8,000 more doctors and 4,000 more nurses in our NHS than when Labour was in power because we got rid of primary care trusts and strategic health authorities, and 20,000 administrative jobs that were not on the front line—a change that Labour opposed bitterly every step of the way. Labour Members must say what would happen to those doctors and nurses if we repealed the Health and Social Care Act 2012, as they have publicly committed to do.
Jenny Chapman (Darlington) (Lab)
If the Secretary of States wants some kind of TripAdvisor-style scheme for the NHS that is fine; it may improve safety and it may help patient choice. However, a woman who has fallen to the bottom of her stairs and is waiting hours for an ambulance does not have a choice. That is happening now and it was not happening five or six years ago. What is he going to do about that?
Mr Hunt
First, I will ensure that throughout the system when we have failures in care we are completely transparent about them and do not seek to brush them under the carpet. That is a very important change. Secondly, yes there is pressure on ambulance services, just as there is pressure in most parts of the NHS now, but under this Government our ambulance service is taking 1,000 more people every day on emergency journeys. We should credit it with doing a very good job in difficult circumstances.